Significance of shallow core transects for reef models and sea‐level curves,Heron Reef,Great Barrier Reef

A sequence of shallow reef cores from Heron Reef, Great Barrier Reef, provides new insights into Holocene reef growth models. Isochron analysis of a leeward core transect suggests that the north‐western end of Heron Reef reached current sea‐level by ca 6·5 kyr bp and then prograded leeward at a rate of ca 19·6 m/kyr between 5·1 kyr and 4·1 kyr bp (pre‐1950) to the present reef margin. A single short core on the opposing margin of the reef is consistent with greater and more recent progradation there. Further to the east, one windward core reached modern sea‐level by ca 6·3 kyr bp , suggesting near ‘keep‐up’ behaviour at that location, but the opposing leeward margin behind the lagoon reached sea‐level much more recently. Hence, Heron Reef exhibited significantly different reef growth behaviour on different parts of the same margin. Mean reef accretion rates calculated from within 20 m of one another in the leeward core transect varied between ca 2·9 m and 4·7 m/kyr depending on relative position in the prograding wedge. These cores serve as a warning regarding the use of isolated cores to inform reef growth rates because apparent aggradation at any given location on a reef varies depending on its location relative to a prograding margin. Only transects of closely spaced cores can document reef behaviour adequately so as to inform reef growth models and sea‐level curves. The cores also emphasize potential problems in U‐series dates for corals within a shallow (ca 1·5 m) zone beneath the reef flat. Apparent age inversions restricted to that active diagenetic zone may reflect remobilization and concentration of Th in irregularly distributed microbialites or biofilms that were missed during sample vetting. Importantly, the Th‐containing contaminant causes ages to appear too old, rather than too young, as would be expected from younger cement.     

Estimation of commercial diamond grades based on microdiamonds: a case study of the Koidu diamond mine,Sierra Leone

This paper documents the application of a microdiamond-based approach to the estimation of diamond grade in the Pipe 1 kimberlite at the Koidu mine in Sierra Leone. A geological model of Pipe 1 was constructed to represent the distribution and volume of the dominant kimberlite units within the pipe. Bulk samples, along with representative microdiamond samples, were collected from these units at surface and were used to define the ratio between microdiamond stone frequency (+212 μm stones per kilogram) and recoverable macrodiamond grade (+1.2 mm carats per tonne; 1 carat = 0.2 g). These ratios were applied to a comprehensive, spatially representative microdiamond sample dataset and were combined with a spatial model of country-rock xenolith dilution within the pipe to estimate +1.2 mm recoverable grades. The resource estimate was reconciled with subsequent production results in the elevation range 160 to 100 m above sea level. Production results for each of the six 10 m benches covering this elevation range were compared to the estimated average grades for these zones in the pipe. For the five cases where most of the kimberlite mass on a given bench is represented in the production data, the results show a maximum discrepancy of 6% between predicted and reported production grade with no indication of any consistent bias. This indicates that, when supported by a sound geological model and suitable microdiamond and macrodiamond data, the microdiamond-based estimation approach can provide reliable constraints on macrodiamond grade, even in the case of geologically complex bodies such as Koidu Pipe 1.

     

Sedimentology of the continental end‐Permian extinction event in the Sydney Basin,eastern Australia

Upper Permian to Lower Triassic coastal plain successions of the Sydney Basin in eastern Australia have been investigated in outcrop and continuous drillcores. The purpose of the investigation is to provide an assessment of palaeoenvironmental change at high southern palaeolatitudes in a continental margin context for the late Permian (Lopingian), across the end‐Permian Extinction interval, and into the Early Triassic. These basins were affected by explosive volcanic eruptions during the late Permian and, to a much lesser extent, during the Early Triassic, allowing high‐resolution age determination on the numerous tuff horizons. Palaeobotanical and radiogenic isotope data indicate that the end‐Permian Extinction occurs at the top of the uppermost coal bed, and the Permo‐Triassic boundary either within an immediately overlying mudrock succession or within a succeeding channel sandstone body, depending on locality due to lateral variation. Late Permian depositional environments were initially (during the Wuchiapingian) shallow marine and deltaic, but coastal plain fluvial environments with extensive coal‐forming mires became progressively established during the early late Permian, reflected in numerous preserved coal seams. The fluvial style of coastal plain channel deposits varies geographically. However, apart from the loss of peat‐forming mires, no significant long‐term change in depositional style (grain size, sediment‐body architecture, or sediment dispersal direction) was noted across the end‐Permian Extinction (pinpointed by turnover of the palaeoflora). There is no evidence for immediate aridification across the boundary despite a loss of coal from these successions. Rather, the end‐Permian Extinction marks the base of a long‐term, progressive trend towards better‐drained alluvial conditions into the Early Triassic. Indeed, the floral turnover was immediately followed by a flooding event in basinal depocentres, following which fluvial systems similar to those active prior to the end‐Permian Extinction were re‐established. The age of the floral extinction is constrained to 252.54 ± 0.08 to 252.10 ± 0.06 Ma by a suite of new Chemical Abrasion Isotope Dilution Thermal Ionization Mass Spectrometry U‐Pb ages on zircon grains. Another new age indicates that the return to fluvial sedimentation similar to that before the end‐Permian Extinction occurred in the basal Triassic (prior to 251.51 ± 0.14 Ma). The character of the surface separating coal‐bearing pre‐end‐Permian Extinction from coal‐barren post‐end‐Permian Extinction strata varies across the basins. In basin‐central locations, the contact varies from disconformable, where a fluvial channel body has cut down to the level of the top coal, to conformable where the top coal is overlain by mudrocks and interbedded sandstone–siltstone facies. In basin‐marginal locations, however, the contact is a pronounced erosional disconformity with coarse‐grained alluvial facies overlying older Permian rocks. There is no evidence that the contact is everywhere a disconformity or unconformity.     

Mapping and monitoring carbon stocks with satellite observations: a comparison of methods

Mapping and monitoring carbon stocks in forested regions of the world, particularly the tropics, has attracted a great deal of attention in recent years as deforestation and forest degradation account for up to 30% of anthropogenic carbon emissions, and are now included in climate change negotiations. We review the potential for satellites to measure carbon stocks, specifically aboveground biomass (AGB), and provide an overview of a range of approaches that have been developed and used to map AGB across a diverse set of conditions and geographic areas. We provide a summary of types of remote sensing measurements relevant to mapping AGB, and assess the relative merits and limitations of each. We then provide an overview of traditional techniques of mapping AGB based on ascribing field measurements to vegetation or land cover type classes, and describe the merits and limitations of those relative to recent data mining algorithms used in the context of an approach based on direct utilization of remote sensing measurements, whether optical or lidar reflectance, or radar backscatter. We conclude that while satellite remote sensing has often been discounted as inadequate for the task, attempts to map AGB without satellite imagery are insufficient. Moreover, the direct remote sensing approach provided more coherent maps of AGB relative to traditional approaches. We demonstrate this with a case study focused on continental Africa and discuss the work in the context of reducing uncertainty for carbon monitoring and markets.     

Trends in stream and river temperature

Information on past and likely future trends in water temperature from different parts of the world is collated. The potential causes of trends in the thermal regimes of streams and rivers are many, but the existing database of water temperature information is inadequate to provide a global perspective on changes during the recent, let alone the more remote, past. Data from Europe suggest that warming of up to ca. 1°C in mean river temperatures has occurred during the 20th century, but that this trend has not been continuous, is distorted by extreme hydrological events, is not correlated with simple hydrometeorological factors and has been influenced by a variety of human activities. Predictive studies indicate that an accelerated rise in stream and river temperatures will occur during the next century as a consequence of global warming. However, forecasts must be tentative because future climatic conditions are uncertain and interactions between climate, hydrological and vegetation changes are complex.     

A comparison of network model creation algorithms based on the quality of wayfinding results

Various network model creation algorithms have been introduced to demonstrate a better approximation of the actual walking pattern and to provide a better wayfinding guide. However, it is under‐investigated which algorithm creates the most appropriate indoor navigation network model in the context of wayfinding applications. Due to the lack of discussion, some studies unconsciously extended an algorithm designed for creating an outdoor navigation network model to indoor space applications. This is problematic because indoor space has different spatial contexts from outdoor space, such as non‐linear space and no‐designated walking space. Our solution is to select five well‐known algorithms that have been introduced, to reproduce the algorithm for the automated construction of the indoor navigation network model, and to evaluate the applicability of algorithms for indoor wayfinding applications. This article compares the quality of wayfinding results from the output of the indoor navigation network model against two criteria: route efficiency (i.e., length) and route simplicity (i.e., number of directions). Our statistical analysis illustrates that the visibility graph algorithm is the most appropriate for indoor wayfinding applications.     

A probabilistic framework for improving reverse geocoding output

Reverse geocoding, which transforms machine‐readable GPS coordinates into human‐readable location information, is widely used in a variety of location‐based services and analysis. The output quality of reverse geocoding is critical because it can greatly impact these services provided to end‐users. We argue that the output of reverse geocoding should be spatially close to and topologically correct with respect to the input coordinates, contain multiple suggestions ranked by a uniform standard, and incorporate GPS uncertainties. However, existing reverse geocoding systems often fail to fulfill these aims. To further improve the reverse geocoding process, we propose a probabilistic framework that includes: (1) a new workflow that can adapt all existing address models and unitizes distance and topology relations among retrieved reference data for candidate selections; (2) an advanced scoring mechanism that quantifies characteristics of the entire workflow and orders candidates according to their likelihood of being the best candidate; and (3) a novel algorithm that derives statistical surfaces for input GPS uncertainties and propagates such uncertainties into final output lists. The efficiency of the proposed approaches is demonstrated through comparisons to the four commercial reverse geocoding systems and through human judgments. We envision that more advanced reverse geocoding output ranking algorithms specific to different application scenarios can be built upon this work.     

Pockmarks in the inner Oslofjord,Norway

Multibeam bathymetric surveys of the Inner Oslofjord, Norway have revealed a high density of pockmarks in the 179-km² inner fjord area, which contains over 500 pockmarks of varying size, typically 20–50 m in diameter and 2–10 m deep. These pockmarks have been investigated with a variety of techniques, including acoustic subbottom profiling, sedimentological and geochemical analyses of cores, remotely operated vehicle observation, and morphometry. Both the distribution and shapes of the pockmarks suggest that they are related to structures in the bedrock underlying relatively thin (<50 m) unconsolidated glacial and postglacial sediments. The data provide no direct indication of a particular mode of pockmark formation, but release of large amounts of biogenic, shallow methane seems unlikely. Several lines of evidence point to a continuous process of pockmark formation followed by inactivity, with some pockmarks recently active whereas others have been inactive for a considerable time. Some pockmarks are characterised by coarse sediment in their centres. The density, variety and easy access make this pockmark field an ideal model area for pockmark research. John S. Gray is deceased.     

What makes a ‘REDD’ country?

Despite remaining uncertainties, Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation in developing countries (REDD) projects are being planned and implemented across the tropics, primarily targeting countries with high forest cover and high deforestation rates. However, there is growing recognition that REDD planning requires a broadened approach; a future REDD mechanism should incentivise emissions reduction in all developing forested countries, and should address critical non-carbon dimensions of REDD implementation—quality of forest governance, conservation priorities, local rights and tenure frameworks, and sub-national project potential. When considering this broader suite of factors, different REDD priorities can emerge, including in countries with low forest cover that would be overlooked by conventional site selection criteria. Using the Philippines as a case study, the paper highlights the importance of an enabling environment to REDD implementation, and presents a more comprehensive and inclusive approach for thinking about what comprises a “REDD country.”